1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for driving a loom comprising a weft insert device, a shedding device, a beating-up device, a cloth take-up device, warp let-off device, etc., and more particularly, to a method and an apparatus suitable for driving a drive actuator of such a device during stoppage of the loom.
2. Description of Prior Art
A loom is provided with various machines and devices such as a weft insert device, a shedding device, a beating-up device, a cloth take-up device, a warp let-off device and the like, and make them perform various motion such as inserting, shedding, beating up, taking up cloth, letting off warps and the like by driving such devices.
Since the devices are driven in correspondence to, for example, rotation of the main shaft of a loom, they should undergo such operations as phasing (timing adjustment) relative to the main shaft, and further, mechanical adjustment and setting of an amount of driving, driving position, etc., according to the specification of a cloth. Such operations should be performed, while stopping the loom, and some devices require works on not only various devices provided in a loom but also every heald frame, that is, plural members such as, for example, within one shedding device. Similar operations are carried out at the time of setting weaving conditions, looming, gaiting, maintenance, repairing and the like.
Such works include, for example, in case of setting weaving conditions, positioning or adjustment of the height of a heald frame, cross timing of warps, a shedding amount and the like in a shedding device. In cases of looming and gaiting, for example, attaching and detaching or the like of the heald frame in a shedding device or attaching and detaching or the like of a reed in a beating-up device are also included.
Those works are carried out while stopping a drive actuator such as a motor for driving these devices at a predetermined position. It is complicating that a desired position for stopping the drive actuator varies from member to member composing the devices, and that sometimes one device requires a plurality of positions for stopping.
Heretofore, however, an operator had to stop the drive actuator at a desired position manually to perform in that state operations such as positioning, adjustment, setting and the like among the devices or composing members, holding an instruction manual describing a set value for each weaving condition by one hand.
Accordingly, the operation efficiency has so far been very bad. Also, in case of devices driven by a main shaft, special works such as, for example, inching the main shaft of a loom for positioning, releasing a brake for the main shaft and rotating the main shaft manually and so on are required, which means a great labor to stop the main shaft at a desired position. Furthermore, repeated inching operations shorten the life of a drive apparatus.
On the other hand, there is proposed a technique in which weaving conditions (data) are displayed on an image plane of a loom for an operator (a maintenance man) to perform adjusting work while watching the displayed image plane (Japanese Patent Appln. Publication (KOKOKU) No. 6-99860). Though this technique enables one to automatically confirm on a display whether set conditions have been met or not, it considers nothing about automatically positioning a drive actuator to drive the machines and devices.
As mentioned above, it has never been done to automatically drive a drive actuator to a position easy to work on machines and devices and stop there so that an operator can work at that position.
An object of the present invention lies in automatically driving an actuator for working on the machines and devices of a loom to a position easy to work on the devices.
The method of driving a loom according to the present invention comprises: setting information on a stop position for one or more of the devices of the drive actuator which drives the devices, prior to starting an operation for the devices of the loom; driving the drive actuator according to instructions to operate by a control circuit which controls the drive actuator; and stopping the drive actuator, based. on the stop position information.
The drive apparatus of the loom according to the present invention comprises: a drive actuator for driving one or more devices of the loom; a control circuit for controlling the drive actuator; and a setter for outputting contents set in the setter to the control circuit. Information for a stop position of the drive actuator relative to the devices prior to starting an operation of the devices is set in the setter, and the control circuit drives the drive actuator according to instructions for operations and stops the drive actuator, based on the information on the stop position.
A weft insert device, a shedding device, a beating-up device, a cloth take-up device, a warp let-off device and the like can be exemplified as the devices. These devices may be of a type to be driven by the main shaft of a loom, or may be of a type to be driven by an exclusive drive source.
A rotary drive mechanism such as an induction motor, a servomotor, a rotary solenoid or the like and a rectilinear drive mechanism such as a linear motor, an air cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder, or the like can be exemplified as a drive actuator.
Works for the devices are to be carried out while the loom is stopped, and the following can be exemplified as such works.
Works in setting weaving conditions, for example, in an shedding device, positioning and adjusting of closing timing (cross timing), a shedding amount or the like, and works relative to the shedding device.
Attachment and detachment of the devices themselves and members constituting them such as a heald frame of the shedding device, a reed of the beating-up device or the like at the time of looming and gaiting.
Oiling and confirmation of tightening of bolts and exchanging expendables for each device and the drive actuator at the time of maintenance work.
Works to be done at the time of repairing yarn breakage including warp yarn and selvage yarn.
Stop position information of the drive actuator is set prior to starting such works as above. This stop position information is set at a suitable time before performing the works on the devices.
Then, the drive actuator is driven according to operation instructions and is stopped on the basis of the set stop position information. In this state, the works on the devices are started by an operator.
Therefore, by presetting stop position information easy to work on the devices, the drive actuator is automatically driven to a desired position for readily carrying out the works on the devices and automatically stopped at that position.
The driving method and apparatus may be made to detect an amount of displacement of the output shaft of the drive actuator, and stop the drive actuator on the basis of the stop position information and the detected amount of displacement.
In the driving method and apparatus, it is possible to preset the stop information relative to plural work contents in the setter, to display the work contents on the setter, and to have the control circuit control the drive actuator according to selected work contents.
The driving method and apparatus may include works on a plurality of the machines and devices driven by the drive actuator, and the stop a position information for each device may be preset in the setter.
In the driving method and apparatus, the plural work contents include works where a plurality of stop positions are present for a specific device, and the stop position information corresponding to each work may be set in the setter.
In the driving method and apparatus, it is possible to preset the contents of work instructions for the works to be completed after the drive actuator is stopped, in addition to the work contents and the stop position information, to stop the drive actuator via the control circuit according to one of the work contents in the setter, and to make the setter display the contents of work instructions after the drive actuator is stopped.